Showing posts with label plants. Show all posts
Showing posts with label plants. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Green Update



The sunnier days have made my plants grow at a faster rate than ever before. My large succulent is sprouting all kinds of limbs and the base of the trunk is hardening even more. You can see in just a month's time that the upper limbs are multiplying rapidly and more leaves are appearing with each day.

The avocado below is maturing quickly and the leaves have finally unfolded. They double in size within a week and the stem has quadrupled in size within a fortnight's time.



Thursday, April 9, 2009

Green Update

Remember this short little guy? Well, look at him now. Not only has he grown twice in height but he is now morphing into a whole new animal. There are entirely new limbs replicating out of the main stem of the plant. Not only that but the stem is beginning to form a protective bark at the base of the plant. He seems to want to branch out and explore a new axis of life..it may be time for a re-potting soon. How metaphorical?


Sunday, December 28, 2008

Green Update

One of the persimmon seeds that I began germinating more than a month ago has finally lifted its head and emerged from the soil. The seedling has grown about three inches in just two days. There are two more seeds on the way but they are still keeping warm beneath the soil.


In other good news, my succulent has been budding for the past week and it should bloom any day now. This guy has shown plenty of new growth within the month of December and I expect it will grow well through the winter.



Aaaaalso, I went grocery shopping today at Lotte Mart and they had Kumquats in the produce section. Sweet. I had my first-ever taste of Kumquat this summer back in Philly and I am happy to add these juicy little nubbins back into my fruit repertoire. You can count on seeing Kumquat seeds in the next green update.

Sustainable Greg only wishes he had such a knack for fruiting plants.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Green Update

As apartment 303 becomes a more civilized place to live with each passing week, there have been some natural additions to the green family. Here are the latest and greatest in my organic adventure series:

After a failed attempt at home to grow moss in my Dad's garden, I am now trying to transplant a small palette of moss that I picked up at Naejangsan onto this little rock garden that I zenned up last week. If this dies, I am going whip up a moss mixture and spread it onto the rock using the moss blender method. If that fails, then I might as well just call up Greg Buddha.

Here is the newest member of the plant family, just picked him up last week. I know that my buddy Jeremiah Curtiss had one of these plants in his room last year in 773 Ostrom and I took a liking to the species. After a swift repotting, the desk organizer [recycled egg carton] now has a cozy new neighbor.

This is my latest project. The seeds above are of the Persimmon Fruit [pictured below]. After placing the seeds into a period of cold stratification - simulating their natural dormancy - for the past three weeks, they are now incubating on my windowsill in the morning sun. I hope that they will sprout within the next several weeks, then I will be able to plant the seeds and anticipate healthy growth in my warm apartment deep into the spring.

The avocado cores are beginning to split. These guys have been hydrating for 3-4 weeks now and should be sprouting within the next two. Right now, the seed is beginning to split itself in half, from which roots and a stalk will begin to sprout.

In the news of splitting, the living rock is beginning a new growth pattern as well. Now that the window is shut, its central pod is opening up and the room has become warmer. As the split widens, a new pod will begin to sprout in an alternate direction from the plant's center and continue to replace old growth.

Oookay...now someone please send me piece of pizza.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Plants

Before you get a bank account, before getting paid or even buying food - any cozy home must be fitted with its first plants. Walking the streets of Gwangju you will see just as many plant stores as we have Wawas back home. I have spotted fig trees, bonsai, pitcher plants, and my longtime favorites - succulents! There is a lady by my school who sells these little guys for "chun won" (1 Korean Won - the paper money here is produced in denominations of 1000, 5000, and 10000).
Here are the plants I have picked up so far, I am open to name/nickname suggestions for each.





Living rocks! The first time I was given one of these, I managed to kill it within two weeks. I am giving it a second try - this time I hope to nurture it towards a healthy bloom. These plants are aptly named "living rocks" for their surface patterns generally resemble that of their surrounding rocky landscape. As they grow, a new bud will slowly emerge from the center, causing the current body of the plant to split off and die. They are members of the Lithops genus, a family of plants native to the arid climate of Souther Africa.

The lady I bought these from also gave me a pocket-full of clementines with my purchase. Apparently, gift-giving is customary in Korean culture. It is not uncommon to walk into your local Bodega and walk out with a free treat.